Pravastatin Side Effects? Support, Info & Advice Needed!

[jazzbird925]

Hi.

I am an insulin dependent Type 1 diabetic (diagnosed with gestational diabetes 20 years ago). I am active, thin (103-105 lbs) and in part, exercise controlled. My blood work is for the most part very good: A1C 6.8 (should come down a bit), LDL has been as low as 65 and never higher than 85 without medication.

That said, when a recent carotid doppler revealed 19% blockage and 29-39% blockage in my arteries, my cardiologist prescribed Lescol as protection against heart disease and stroke. Within days of starting the medication, I lost 5 pounds and had severe calf pain. I stopped the Lescol and was put on Pravastatin, 40 mg.

Initially, I tolerated this statin and the 5 pounds returned, but with 7-10 days, I began developing neck lumps - one of which is an enlarged lymph node and under observation.

I also developed severe shoulder and bicep pain, a popping sound when using my arms (ligaments?) and have limited mobility: putting on and taking off clothing, pushing a shopping cart, reading a book - the simplest of things are painful and restrictive. My daily exercise regime has become difficult but is still necessary due to my diabetes. Thankfully, as of this posting, my legs do not appear to be affected.

The Pravastatin was stopped several weeks ago but there is no improvement. A non-contrast CT scan was done of the lumps and enlarged lymph node and although non-contrast is a compromised exam, nothing alarming was noted. The lumps are being monitored with a return visit to the doctor in several weeks.

Most recently, I've noticed what I discovered is Beau's Lines - horizontal indentations on 7 of my finger nails. According to an internet search, this condition can be caused by medication reaction, illness, trauma etc. My theory is yet another side effect of the statins use - this newest development is too coincidental to statin usage.

Any input, help and validation would be appreciated. Needless to say, this is a miserable situation

Thank you in advance for your responses. I've posted this on several forums in hopes of attracting a wider 'audience.'

[cjbrooksjc]

Jazzbird: Your condition is certainly common to Statin-induced damage. I have not had the bumps you refer to but others on the forum (I read at some point) have. My elbows, hips, knees and shoulders were severely impacted although they have gotten better over the past yr and a half with supplementation (CoQ10, L-Carnitine, B vitamins, etc.). One thing I found very helpful was Joint Relief compound from Iceland Health (it's on the net); just Google it. I'm not promoting the product - it simply helped me recover mobility; particularly in my shoulders which ultimately popped and squeaked like an old mill wheel especially when combing my hair (what was left from yet another side effect). My elbows also complained bitterly when I put to much weight in a shopping cart and try to turn it down the isles. OK, enough commiseration - to recover, I currently take (principally) the following OTC supplements daily:

CoQ10 - 800 Mg
L-Carnitine - 1 Gram
B6, 12, Folic Acid - one daily caplet
Vinpocetine (an otc vasodilator) - 10 Mg
Astaxanthin (a powerful anti-oxident) - 1Mg

I also supplement with Soy protein shakes with added D-ribose and Creatine every other day. BTW - My kitchen cupboard looks like an open lab closet.

Before Statins I was athletic, trim (for me) at 205, and involved in many activities. I am now about 250, often fatigued, and trying hard to recover. I took Lipitor and Zocor (40 Mg) for just about four yrs. and continued taking it for a year or so after the worst symptoms surfaced until I discovered the source of my problems.

In your situation I would start with about 1 Gram of CoQ10 and 500 to 1 gram of l-carnitine to help your cellular structure repair itself, and the B vitamins. It takes time to notice improvement (it did for me in any case), so don't be discouraged. Just put your head down and push through this. Some people, you will read on the forum, recover completely, but everyone gets better to some degree when they STOP the statins and start the supplements. I feel, depending on how my day progresses, anywhere from 60 to 85 percent recovered; so recovery is possible.

My best wishes for a full recovery,

Brooks

[cjbrooksjc]

Jazz, Sorry, yes, Vitamin D3 also. That should help with your nails too.

Brooks

[mspurple]

I am a 47year old female, over weight but working so hard on that, eating all the right things from all the things I read. I recently got a job with insurance so I go for a check up and my cholestoral is high. I take the fish oil that he prescibes first and the only fat I eat is a few nuts per day, a salmon type fish everyother day, otherwise all I'm doing is fresh fruits vegtables and on and on. Everything in my cubbered is low or no fat. I go yesterday and it's higher????? He has prescribed Trilipex and everything I read tells me NO.....So my friend says she has been on Pravastatin for 3 months no side effects and hers is down to perfect. Can I get some opinions? I am working out 5 days a weeks and have 2 jobs, I can not afford for all these bad things I'm reading to happen to me. Is there a way to lower this yourself besides what I am already doing, one girlfriend says Flax??? I need advice because I have never been on any drug before in my life and do not want to start now if it can be avoided. Thank you

[epfleger]

Hi MsPurple:

It's simple: DO NOT GO ON STATINS. The war is not against cholesterol, but agaianst inflammation.

Please read through the thousands of posts on this site and educate yourself about the dark side of statins. And you're lucky to have found this site before taking this crap.

I find it curious that your cholesterol went UP after going on a low fat diet, don't you? Almost as if your body is saying "hey, I need that cholesterol stuff, so I'll make more."

Use your common sense and don't buy in to the statin con.

I hope others on this site will weigh in on your question.

Ed

[David Staup]

Mspurple.
do not go on statins AND do whatever you can to raise your cholesterol levels...read the following then check out the diet section on this web site home page and you will see that a proper diet contains about 30% animal fat.


This section includes excerpts from the book Malignant Medical Myths by Joel M. Kauffman

This news does not reflect the best dietary science on a number of issues. Lowering total cholesterol by 4% would mean about 8 mg/dL, a trivial change. The assay is ± 25% and total serum cholesterol varies depending on a recent meal, exercise (up) and stress (up).

Hypercholesterolemia is a made up condition now said to mean that total serum cholesterol is above 200 mg/dL or LDL-C is over 125 mg/dL. This was done to advance the sales of cholesterol-lowering drugs, and Cheerios® incidentally benefited.

A 2004 observational study from the University of Innsbruck, Austria, on 150,000 subjects showed that low cholesterol levels predict premature death in men of all ages, and in women over the age of 50.

In the 1990 Quebec Cardiovascular Study on 4576 men aged 35-64 years to start, serum total cholesterol levels were not associated with either cardiovascular disease or all-cause mortality.

Even in dialysis patients, all-cause mortality was highest at the lowest total cholesterol levels, being 30% lower when total cholesterol was approximately 240 mg/dL compared with TC <160. Also, mortality was 17% lower at low-density-lipoprotein (LDL-C) approximately 190 mg/dL compared with LDL-C <130 in a 2004 study.

Among the elderly the effects of low serum total cholesterol and low LDL-C were found to be deadly. In a study on residents of northern Manhattan, NY, 2,277 subjects were followed for 10 years with results reported in 2005. Two-thirds were female and 1/3 of the total were Hispanic, African American and white. Subjects were 65-98 years old at baseline, mean age 76. The chance of dying was twice as great in the lowest quartile of total cholesterol or LDL-C levels, while HDL-C and triglyceride levels were not related to all-cause mortality in this age group.

Women had higher baseline total cholesterol and LDL-C levels (206 and 124) than men (191 and 117), yet the women lived longer. Men with the same total cholesterol and LDL-C levels as women lived as long. Of the subjects, 1/5 were taking statin drugs to lower total cholesterol and LDL-C, which would have pushed them into the lowest quartile.

This is an excellent confirmation that high total cholesterol and LDL-C ( low density lipoprotein cholesterol ) levels are beneficial, certainly in the elderly who are most likely to be prescribed a statin drug. The emphasis on the value of lowering LDL-C, rather than lowering total cholesterol, taken by Big Pharma in the last few years, is invalidated by this study. LDL-C is not bad cholesterol; it is an essential form!

Dr. Bernard Forette and a team of French researchers from Paris reported in 1989 that women of mean age 82 with high cholesterol and followed for 5 years lived the longest. When the data of Forette are graphed, the age-adjusted data show a minimal risk of dying out to total cholesterol = 320 mg/dL for elderly women. The minimum death rate occurred with a total cholesterol level of 272 mg/dL, far higher than the current National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) recommendations of approximately 200 mg/dL for everyone.

The death rate was 5.2 times higher for women who had very low cholesterol, specifically, 155 mg/dL.　 The death rate was 1.8 times higher for women who had very high cholesterol, specifically, 348 mg/dL, and also 1.8 times higher at 200 mg/dL.

What possible basis could there be for the NCEP recommendations for <200? In their report, the French doctors warned against lowering cholesterol in elderly women.

Serum total cholesterol rises naturally with age from a mean level of 178 mg/dL in 18-24 year-olds to a maximum mean level of 230 mg/dL in 55-64 year-olds. Men over 55 and women of all ages who have the highest cholesterol levels live the longest, since high total cholesterol protects against cardiovascular disease (CVD) and infections (Ravnskov U. High cholesterol may protect against infections and atherosclerosis. Quarterly Journal of Medicine, 2003;96:927-934).

For people of a narrow age range, even in a 13-year span, say ages 50-62 years, a graph of total cholesterol levels of men who did and did not have CVD has been published in 2001.

There is so much overlap between the men with or without CVD that there is no likelihood that the slightly greater chance for CVD at the higher total cholesterol levels could be used for prediction in any one individual, even in this group spanning 13 years in age.

This is the reason that drug advertising claims that higher total cholesterol means quicker death from CVD are false - in large groups of people of mixed ages, the older ones will have higher total cholesterol and LDL-C, and older people die sooner than younger ones, not necessarily from CVD.

Joel M. Kauffman, Ph.D.
Former Professor of Chemistry of the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia, now Emeritus.
Author of Malignant Medical Myths: Why Medical Treatment Causes 200,000 Deaths per Year

[David Staup]

Jazzbird,

I suggest you talk to your doctor about "chealation therapy" which he will probably scoff at but talk to him anyway after reaserching it yourself.

Then look into apple cider vinager and its health benifits... I too have some documented blockage and have been mixing applecider vinager with drinks daily for about 6 months and believe it is slowly removing the calcium from my arteries... I hear a whooshing in both ears from this and it seems to be slowly lessening...I no longer have insurance and cannot afford the testing necessary (I was disabled after 5 years on statins) and cannot provide proof but I am an excellant observer and believe that my blockages are slowly being reduced.

David

[schatzi]

MsPurple,

Whatever you do, stay away from statins of any kind, even red rice yeast!

Control your stress level and keep eating healthy. normal foods. If you must, for serious health issues, lower your cholesterol you can use plant sterols and stenols, ie. Promise Supershots (Dairy Dept).

The last statin I took was Crestor, great results LDL 81, Total 141. Sounds good, but believe me it just about put me over the edge. Never, never will I touch a statin again.

My total cholesterol is back up to 192, feel much better, although muscle and joint pain is persisting. Even my Dr.'s agree statins are not for everyone, at least 20% of patients cannot tolerate them at all, others have less severe problems.

[schatzi]

MsPurple,
forgot about Pravachol. It made me very sick, vomitting every night, caused me to have GERD.

Read about the side effect of various statins I was prescribed over a period of about 15 years. Read my post in MY STATIN STORY.

Schatzi
PS. Welcome to the forum